White Plains High School senior Vincent Poon turns athletic setback into scientific focus

These days, Vincent Poon spends much of his time in the science lab at White Plains High School, working through physics problems and preparing for a future he hopes will include a career in the field.

That focus represents a shift for the 17-year-old senior, who for most of his time at WPHS filled his days by running. But a serious spinal injury this fall brought his track career at the school to an abrupt end, forcing Vincent to redirect both his time and energy.

“It sucks,” Vincent said plainly about the injury, the result of a fall. “Because I used to spend like four, three, four hours a day playing sports.”

Vincent had competed in varsity cross country and track since seventh grade, specializing in events including the 55-meter, 110-meter and 400-meter hurdles.

“I’ve run varsity cross-country races and scored most of my points in either distance relays for track or in hurdling events,” he said.

While he is currently sidelined and attending physical therapy several times a week, Vincent remains hopeful he will return to the sport in some form.
“I’ll probably join a club or something because I enjoy doing it,” he said.

With athletics on pause, Vincent suddenly found himself with something unfamiliar: time. As he undergoes intensive physical therapy, he is now looking ahead to college, where he plans to study physics and continue exploring the subject that has come to define his academic identity.

“I kind of finished all the curriculum last year,” he said. “So this year I ended up taking some more artsy electives.”

By the end of his junior year, Vincent had completed the school’s core STEM coursework, having taken as many advanced science and math classes as possible. His senior-year schedule reflects a broader academic exploration, including AP Literature and a growing interest in philosophy.

Vincent’s path toward physics was not inevitable.

“I used to not be super STEM-y,” he said. “And then I started to enjoy math more once I started actually doing it in high school. And then junior year, I took physics, and I really liked it.”

What hooked him was the freedom to think deeply and independently.

“I spent so much time outside of the classroom working on it because it was so fun to be able to mix math and random stuff that I saw throughout the day,” Vincent said.

That curiosity often leads him to create and solve problems far beyond what is assigned in class.

“Sometimes I would spend like five hours a day on these six problems I came up with for weeks, trying to come up with solutions to these problems,” he said. “That’s my favorite thing about physics — that you could leave me in a room with a problem and not tell me how to solve it, and if I just work on it enough, I’m gonna find an answer.”

Vincent is open about the personal growth that has accompanied his academic development. Earlier in life, social interaction did not come easily.
“I was very awkward and didn’t communicate well,” he said. “I didn’t understand sarcasm and things like that.”

He credits his friends with helping him learn how to collaborate and connect with others.

“My assistance really came from my friends,” Vincent said. “I’ve learned how to work with other people and work with their talents.”

Teachers, he added, have played a key role in expanding his interests beyond math and science.

“I’ve only started liking writing and reading after taking AP classes these last two years,” he said. “In fact, this year, through AP Lit alone, I’ve already written more research papers than I have in all my years of life combined beforehand.”

Outside of school, Vincent works Sundays as a barista at Coffee Social on East Post Road, where he enjoys both the technical and social aspects of the job.

“I enjoy going above and beyond,” he said. “Because like, you’re bored. You’re working, you’re bored. So someone comes in and their kid wants a fun hot chocolate — of course I’m going to set up an array of all the stuff I have.”

He is also active in community service through National Honor Society, volunteering at food shelters, tutoring in the study center, assisting at swim meets and helping with children’s programs at the library.

Another side of Vincent’s creativity appears each Halloween.

“I make my own Halloween costumes every year,” he said.

Last year, he designed and sewed an elaborate Oogie Boogie costume from “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” a project he approached with the same care and enthusiasm he brings to physics.

“I am a huge fan of the process,” he said.

Vincent applied to 11 colleges and has already been accepted to the University of Maryland and Penn State, among others. As he waits to hear back from the remaining schools, he remains guided by a personal standard he applies across disciplines.

“I have an expectation of myself to execute at the highest level anything that I do,” he said. “I don’t feel comfortable writing a paper knowing that I’m leaving holes in my argument.”

Though his running career at White Plains High School may have ended sooner than expected, Vincent is moving forward with the same determination that once propelled him over hurdles.